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he advanced. But I shall go on to the Gothic war, after first relating what befell the Goths and the Italians before 5.1.2 this war. When Zeno was reigning in Byzantium, Augustus held the western power, whom the Romans called Augustulus by way of a diminutive, because he received the empire while still a youth, which his father Orestes, being most intelligent, 5.1.3 administered for him. For the Romans some time before had brought in the Sciri and Alani and certain other Gothic nations as allies; as a result of which it befell them to suffer at the hands of Alaric and Attila the things which were related by me in 5.1.4 the previous books. And in proportion as the power of the barbarians among them flourished, so the prestige of the Roman soldiers now declined, and under the fair name of alliance they were tyrannized over and oppressed by the newcomers; so that they compelled them openly to do many other things not at all of their own will and at last they demanded that they should divide with them all the lands of Italy. 5.1.5 And indeed they ordered Orestes to give them the third part of these, and when he by no means agreed to do this 5.1.6 they straightway killed him. There was a certain man among them, Odoacer by name, who belonged to the king's bodyguards; who then promised them that he would do the things they had announced, 5.1.7 if they would set him up in power. And so having taken over the tyranny, he did no other harm to the emperor, but allowed him to live henceforth as a private citizen. 5.1.8 And having granted the third part of the lands to the barbarians, and in this way having made them his most loyal comrades, he strengthened his tyranny for ten years. 5.1.9 About the same time the Goths also, who had been settled in Thrace by the emperor's grant, took up arms against the Romans, with Theuderic leading them, a man who was a patrician and had ascended to the consular chair 5.1.10 in Byzantium. But the emperor Zeno, knowing how to handle the present situation well, advised Theuderic to march to Italy and, by coming to grips with Odoacer, to procure the western 5.1.11 dominion for himself and the Goths. For it was better for him, especially since he had attained the dignity of the senate, to rule over all the Romans and Italians by overpowering a tyrant, than to incur so great a risk by fighting with the emperor. 5.1.12 And Theuderic, pleased with the suggestion, went to Italy, and the people of the Goths followed him, placing their children and wives in the waggons and all the furniture 5.1.13 they were able to carry. And when they came very near the Ionian gulf, they were quite unable to cross, as they had no ships; so going around the circuit of the gulf they proceeded onwards through the land of the Taulantii and 5.1.14 the nations in that region. The men of Odoacer, having met them, were defeated in many battles and shut themselves up with their leader in Ravenna and in 5.1.15 the strongest of the other places. And having set themselves to a siege, the Goths took all the other places, each one in whatever way befell it, but the fortress of Caesena, which is three hundred stades distant from Ravenna, and Ravenna itself, where it happened that Odoacer was, they were able to take neither by surrender nor 5.1.16 by force. For this Ravenna lies on a level plain at the extremity of the Ionian gulf, separated by a measure of two stades from being on the sea, and it appears to be accessible neither to ships nor to a land army. 5.1.17 For ships are quite unable to put in to the shore there, since the sea itself is an obstacle, forming a shoal for no less than thirty stades, and from it this shore, although seen very near by sailors, by reason of the extent of the shoal 5.1.18 happens to be very far away. And for a land army it is nowhere accessible. For the river Padus, which they also call the Eridanus, flowing from the borders of the Celts in this direction, and other navigable rivers with certain lakes, surrounding it on all sides, 5.1.19 make the city an island. Here a sort of marvel happens every day. The sea in the morning, taking on the form of a river, rises inland a day's journey for a well-girt man and navigable

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ἐχώρησεν. ἐγὼ δὲ ἐπὶ πόλεμον τὸν Γοτθικὸν εἶμι, ἐπειπὼν πρότερον ὅσα Γότθοις τε καὶ Ἰταλιώταις πρὸ 5.1.2 τοῦδε τοῦ πολέμου γενέσθαι ξυνέβη. ἐπὶ Ζήνωνος ἐν Βυζαντίῳ βασιλεύοντος Αὔγουστος εἶχε τὸ ἑσπέριον κράτος, ὃν καὶ Αὐγούστουλον ὑποκοριζόμενοι ἐκάλουν Ῥωμαῖοι, ὅτι δὴ μειράκιον ὢν ἔτι τὴν βασιλείαν παρέλαβεν, ἥν οἱ Ὀρέστης ὁ πατὴρ διῳκεῖτο ξυνετώ5.1.3 τατος ὤν. ἐτύγχανον δὲ Ῥωμαῖοι χρόνῳ τινὶ πρότερον Σκίρους τε καὶ Ἀλανοὺς καὶ ἄλλα ἄττα Γοτθικὰ ἔθνη ἐς ξυμμαχίαν ἐπαγαγόμενοι· ἐξ οὗ δὴ αὐτοῖς πρός τε Ἀλαρίχου καὶ Ἀττίλα συνηνέχθη παθεῖν ἅπερ μοι ἐν 5.1.4 τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν λόγοις ἐρρήθη. ὅσῳ τε τὰ τῶν βαρβάρων ἐν αὐτοῖς ἤκμαζε, τοσούτῳ τὸ τῶν Ῥωμαίων στρατιωτῶν ἀξίωμα ἤδη ὑπέληγε, καὶ τῷ εὐπρεπεῖ τῆς ξυμμαχίας ὀνόματι πρὸς τῶν ἐπηλύδων τυραννούμενοι ἐβιάζοντο· ὥστε αὐτοὺς ἀνέδην ἄλλα τε πολλὰ οὔ τι ἑκουσίους ἠνάγκαζον καὶ τελευτῶντες ξύμπαντας πρὸς αὐτοὺς νείμασθαι τοὺς ἐπὶ τῆς Ἰταλίας ἀγροὺς ἠξίουν. 5.1.5 ὧν δὴ τὸ τριτημόριον σφίσι διδόναι τὸν Ὀρέστην ἐκέλευον, ταῦτά τε ποιήσειν αὐτὸν ὡς ἥκιστα ὁμολο5.1.6 γοῦντα εὐθὺς ἔκτειναν. ἦν δέ τις ἐν αὐτοῖς Ὀδόακρος ὄνομα, ἐς τοὺς βασιλέως δορυφόρους τελῶν· ὃς αὐτοῖς τότε ποιήσειν τὰ ἐπαγγελλόμενα ὡμολόγη5.1.7 σεν, ἤνπερ αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς καταστήσωνται. οὕτω τε τὴν τυραννίδα παραλαβὼν ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν τὸν βασιλέα κακὸν ἔδρασεν, ἐν ἰδιώτου δὲ λόγῳ βιοτεύειν 5.1.8 τὸ λοιπὸν εἴασε. καὶ τοῖς βαρβάροις τὸ τριτημόριον τῶν ἀγρῶν παρασχόμενος τούτῳ τε τῷ τρόπῳ αὐτοὺς βεβαιότατα ἑταιρισάμενος τὴν τυραννίδα ἐς ἔτη ἐκρατύνετο δέκα. 5.1.9 Ὑπὸ δὲ τοὺς αὐτοὺς χρόνους καὶ Γότθοι, οἳ ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης δόντος βασιλέως κατῴκηντο, ὅπλα ἐπὶ Ῥωμαίους, Θευδερίχου σφίσιν ἡγουμένου, ἀντῆραν, ἀνδρὸς πατρικίου τε καὶ ἐς τὸν ὑπάτων δίφρον ἀναβεβηκότος 5.1.10 ἐν Βυζαντίῳ. Ζήνων δὲ βασιλεὺς, τὰ παρόντα εὖ τίθεσθαι ἐπιστάμενος, Θευδερίχῳ παρῄνει ἐς Ἰταλίαν πορεύεσθαι καὶ Ὀδοάκρῳ ἐς χεῖρας ἰόντι τὴν ἑσπερίαν 5.1.11 ἐπικράτησιν αὑτῷ τε καὶ Γότθοις πορίζεσθαι. ἄμεινον γάρ οἱ εἶναι, ἄλλως τε καὶ ἐπ' ἀξίωμα βουλῆς ἥκοντι, τύραννον βιασαμένῳ Ῥωμαίων τε καὶ Ἰταλιωτῶν ἄρχειν ἁπάντων ἢ βασιλεῖ διαμαχομένῳ ἐς τόσον κινδύνου 5.1.12 ἰέναι. Θευδέριχος δὲ ἡσθεὶς τῇ ὑποθήκῃ ἐς Ἰταλίαν ᾔει, καὶ αὐτῷ ὁ τῶν Γότθων λεὼς εἵπετο, παῖδάς τε καὶ γυναῖκας ἐν ταῖς ἁμάξαις ἐνθέμενοι καὶ τὰ ἔπιπλα 5.1.13 ὅσα φέρειν οἷοί τε ἦσαν. ἐπειδή τε κόλπου ἄγχιστα τοῦ Ἰονίου ἐγένοντο, διαπορθμεύεσθαι, νηῶν σφίσιν οὐ παρουσῶν, ἥκιστα εἶχον· περιιόντες δὲ τὴν τοῦ κόλπου περίοδον πρόσω ἐχώρουν διά τε Ταυλαντίων καὶ 5.1.14 τῶν ταύτῃ ἐθνῶν. τούτοις δὲ οἱ ἀμφὶ Ὀδόακρον ὑπαντιάσαντες μάχαις τε ἡσσηθέντες πολλαῖς ἔν τε Ῥαβέννῃ σὺν τῷ ἡγεμόνι σφᾶς αὐτοὺς εἷρξαν καὶ ἐν 5.1.15 τοῖς μάλιστα τῶν ἄλλων χωρίων ἰσχυροῖς οὖσι. καθεστηκότες δὲ εἰς πολιορκίαν οἱ Γότθοι τὰ μὲν ἄλλα χωρία ξύμπαντα τρόπῳ δὴ ὅτῳ ἑκάστῳ τετύχηκεν εἷλον, Καισῆναν δὲ τὸ φρούριον, ὅπερ σταδίοις τριακοσίοις Ῥαβέννης διέχει, Ῥάβεννάν τε αὐτὴν, ἔνθα καὶ Ὀδόακρον συμπέπτωκεν εἶναι, οὔτε ὁμολογίᾳ οὔτε 5.1.16 βίᾳ ἑλεῖν ἴσχυον. Ῥάβεννα γὰρ αὕτη ἐν πεδίῳ μὲν κεῖται ὑπτίῳ ἐς τοῦ Ἰονίου κόλπου τὰ ἔσχατα, δυοῖν σταδίοιν διειργομένη μέτρῳ τὸ μὴ ἐπιθαλάσσιος εἶναι, οὐκ εὐέφοδος δὲ οὔτε ναυσὶν οὔτε πεζῶν στρατῷ φαί5.1.17 νεται οὖσα. αἵ τε γὰρ νῆες καταίρειν ἐς τὴν ἐκείνῃ ἀκτὴν ἥκιστα ἔχουσιν, ἐπεὶ αὐτὴ ἡ θάλασσα ἐμπόδιός ἐστι βράχος ποιουμένη οὐχ ἧσσον ἢ κατὰ σταδίους τριάκοντα, καὶ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τὴν ἠϊόνα ταύτην, καίπερ τοῖς πλέουσιν ἄγχιστα ὁρωμένην, τῇ τοῦ βράχους 5.1.18 περιουσίᾳ ἑκαστάτω ξυμβαίνει εἶναι. καὶ τῷ πεζῷ στρατῷ ἐσβατὴ οὐδαμῆ γίγνεται. Πάδος τε γὰρ ὁ ποταμὸς, ὃν καὶ Ἠριδανὸν καλοῦσιν, ἐξ ὁρίων τῶν Κελτικῶν ταύτῃ φερόμενος καὶ ποταμοὶ ἄλλοι ναυσίποροι ξὺν λίμναις τισὶ πανταχόθεν αὐτὴν περιβάλλοντες 5.1.19 ἀμφίρρυτον ποιοῦσι τὴν πόλιν. ἐνταῦθα γίγνεταί τι ἐς ἡμέραν ἑκάστην θαυμάσιον οἷον. ἡ θάλασσα πρωῒ ποιουμένη σχῆμα ποταμοῦ ἡμέρας ὁδὸν εὐζώνῳ ἀνδρὶ ἐς γῆν ἀναβαίνει καὶ πλόϊμον